head gasket, right?

[MM3846]

I'm almost certain it's the issue I have. Want to make sure I'm not missing something stupid.

- oil and coolant are NOT mixing (yet)
- coolant expansion tank is pressurizing and purging. it's a OEM "clear" tank. slowly turning black on the inside (carbon from the exhaust, I'm assuming)
- truck warms up very quick in the morning, but there is no heat. heat is pretty sporadic.
- it will run around 180-185, and shoot up to 220 (2-3 times over a 50 minute drive) for a minute or so, then drop down to 180-185 again. I'm assuming this is when the cap finally has enough and just sprays coolant all over the place. I'm filling the coolant resi every day bc of this self-emptying process. It usually struggles to stay above 175-180 in the winter.
- stumble/mis under load on the highway and at idle when warm, bc I'm losing compression through the leak (presumably)

So, yea? It's a nontraditional leak I'd say, so I just wanted confirmation.

 

[jymmiejamz]

Are you sure that the tank isn't just cracked? Those clear aftermarket ones are just as bad as the black original ones. The beige ones are the only one to have.

 

[MM3846]

It's a beige Land Rover one, not aftermarket. And it's holding pressure.

 

[Grenade]

Have you done a coolant contamination check? They rent the kits at AZ or https://www.amazon.com/Lisle-75500-...?ie=UTF8&qid=1481726249&sr=8-3&keywords=75500

This may clue you in on if there is an issue, but from what I've gathered from people on this board it sounds like you've got HG issues.

HTH

 

[number9]

Surely you've tried a new cap?
......

 

[jymmiejamz]

Do the hoses get firm when it is fully warmed up?

 

[MM3846]

Hoses were firm, I didn't try a new cap bc this one held pressure.

Anyway, it committed suicide this morning, fan exploded and took out the radiator I'm assuming. It's too cold and dark to actually figure it out right now

 

[DiscoPhoto]

Sounds like the water pump grenaded

 

[97GreenMeanie]

Doh!
Sorry to hear it.
Did the water pump seize up and the belt snapped, wiping out the fan?
Might be just a new pump, belt and fan to fix it.

Damn... just beat me

 

[MM3846]

As long as it didn't take out the radiator it still lives to see another day. Maybe.

 

[MM3846]

Water pump and every other pulley spins freely, no noise or play. The water pump should be less than three years and 40k miles old. Can't really see if the fan actually pierced the radiator, going to leave the fan and clutch off and try a cap from my buddy's truck over the weekend... mine fell on the ground this morning when I took it off and it's gone.

 

[MM3846]

Ok, the source of the coolant dump was an exploded throttle body heater hose... probably taken out by the fan. So:

1- coolant pressurizing, undetermined
2- fan exploding, undetermined
3- massive loss of coolant, found

I can't do anything without a cap and I can't get those locally so that will have to wait. Also, most of the radiator hoses "backed off" a little bit, probably due to whatever is pressurizing the cooling system.

 

[jymmiejamz]

Was it by any chance an aftermarket fan? I had the aftermarket RRC fan on my D90 explode right before going onto the Williamsburg bridge at 2am in August of last year. I also know of two others that had the same thing happen.

 

[MM3846]

It was whatever was on the truck, so it's possible. I'm gonna pick up a metal one to replace it... I think it was a Chevy PN I saw posted here at one point

 

[MM3846]

verified exhaust gas in the coolant today, don't think I'm into doing the head gaskets, so she's up for sale pre-part out. I kind of wish tdi swaps were a little cheaper. oh well.

 

[jymmiejamz]

If you have a space to do it, it really isn't that big of a deal. I would at least throw a set of head gaskets on it before you sell it.

 

[MM3846]

If you have a space to do it, it really isn't that big of a deal. I would at least throw a set of head gaskets on it before you sell it.

Been thinking about it. I could get a cheap set and take my time with it.

 

[Howski]

A part out might take as much time as doing the headgaskets